The Nightmare Before the Dream

Some memories are best forgotten.

Roderick Gantry

Painting of King Roderick at his coronation in the ruins of Bloodsteps

Roderick Gantry is the current monarch of the kingdom of man. It was he who first organized the scattered villages of his race into a fighting force bent on freeing their brethren and building a realm of their own. There is not a man alive more well known or more respected than King Roderick.

That being said, little is known about Roderick’s youth. Those works that have been published on Roderick’s history, even those penned by his very own seneschal, fail to shed light on the man’s childhood. What is confirmed is that Roderick was born in one of the many small settlements within the Seven Lakes region. The King has claimed his father was a fisherman, logger, hunter or smith depending on his mood and his audience. His mother has never been spoken of and the king’s demeanor rapidly turns sour when the woman is mentioned.

The most detailed portion of Roderick’s life, his kingdom-building crusade, is spoken about frequently. It is known that Roderick began gathering humans to him with the idea that he would free his people and unite them under a single cause. Until then, the human race had been tribal in nature and fighting between villages was as common as orc slave raids.

In only a few years, Roderick had conquered the territory of the orcs, including their capital, and was crowned the king of man. Fifty years after his coronation, Roderick continues to rule. The king is never seen in public now (and hasn’t been in many years) and it is assumed he is approaching the day he will finally have to entrust his kind with their own governance.